Lost in the Thar

the Indira Gandhi canal project is an example of what short-sighted planning can do to the environment. More than solving water problems in Rajasthan, it has converted the area it irrigates into a marshy and saline desert. Arable land and habitations have become waterlogged. Villages lie deserted and native flora and fauna are dying out, while non-native species thrive in the saline, waterlogged areas.

The water table in areas along the canal and in its command area has risen. Satellite imagery indicates that there was no waterlogging in the area in 1975. In 1995, 6885 hectares (ha) of the command area was waterlogged. The Thar conjures up images of conditions hostile to life